


Wolf Whistles 7

by 852_Prospect_Archivist



Category: The Sentinel
Genre: AU, Alternate Universes, Humor, M/M, Series
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-05-10
Updated: 2013-05-10
Packaged: 2017-12-11 08:18:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,734
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/795939
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/852_Prospect_Archivist/pseuds/852_Prospect_Archivist
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jim and Blair talk to a museum curator.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Wolf Whistles 7

## Wolf Whistles 7

by Athena

Author's website:  <http://fateordestiny.com>

No animals, were or otherwise, were harmed while writing this story

I like to thank Mrs. Tilford for her beta-ing. Our werecats, Sassy and Cuddles, would like to thank her, too.

This story is a sequel to: Wolf Whistles 6 

* * *

Blair had Jim follow his direction to the Museum of Native American Art: One bark for right, two for left, and a nod for straight on. Jim parked in the small employee lot. 

"You went here?" asked Jim. "Can you guide me?" 

_What do you think I've been doing for years?_ The wolf got out of the truck and let Jim put a leash on him for Blair to guide or pull Jim. An adult wolf was stronger than a man and had all the leverage. Blair would never agree to a leash otherwise. Blair led Jim to the main entrance. 

Jim showed his badge to the security guard. 'An associate of mine, Blair Sandburg, visited here a couple of weeks ago. Can you tell me who he saw?" 

The guard looked through the guest book. "He met with Tom Whitefeather." 

Blair was admiring some Native headdresses hanging on the wall when Jim gave a gentle tug on his leash. 

The guard said, "Dogs aren't allowed in the museum." 

Jim clenched his jaw. "Chief is a police wolf. He's a service animal." 

The guard nodded his understanding "He needs to stay near you and on his leash at all times." 

Whitefeather was a burly man of about fifty, wearing a white button-down shirt and blue jeans. He greeted Jim, then bent down to greet Blair who offered the Native American a paw to shake. "He's well trained," said Whitefeather. 

Whitefeather, the director of the small museum, was showing Jim the new collection of Hopi dolls in his office, and Blair wanted to talk to Whitefeather about shape-changing legends. Hopi Buffalo dolls made nice additions to the collection, but they didn't come here to socialize. Blair thought back to the sensations he felt while changing and tried to force them to occur. Remembering his muzzle shortening happened first, Blair howled in pain. 

"Not here," yelled Jim. "I didn't bring a blanket." 

_Like I have any control over this._ Blair caused something to happen, but a single unrepeated trail wasn't scientific proof. Moments later a human Blair unzipped his backpack and started putting on his clothing, only three pieces this time; sweatpants, sweatshirt and moccasins. Layering would have to wait until he got some better control over this lycanthropy thing. 

"Blair," Whitefeather whispered. "Tell me I didn't see what I thought I did." 

Blair shrugged his shoulders. "I'm starting to feel like Wilby Daniels. Tom, do you know any stories about wolves changing into men and vice versa?" 

"I told you the Cree story, Coyote Marries a Man," said Whitefeather. "I know a few others. Do you want a blanket or some coffee?" 

"Coffee would be nice." When Blair realized he was lying with his hands and feet on the floor, he sat up in a more human pose then sat beside Jim on Whitefeather's sofa. "The blanket is to change under. Jim gets upset about indecent exposure - he's been a cop too long. I personally don't think there's anything indecent about the human body." 

"I agree," said Whitefeather. Half the carvings on display in the museum were nudes. 

"Tom, any wisdom you can impart will be a great help," Blair said. "I've heard the story, but you can tell Jim and I love hearing you talk." 

Whitefeather told the story of a conceited man who refuses to marry any of the women of his tribe. Coyote, the trickster, changes himself into a beautiful woman. After the man marries her, she refuses to let him see their children. When she leaves, he and his mother find wolf pups. The man decides to change his ways and marry an ugly woman. The story ends with Coyote tricking the man a second time. 

After Whitefeather started another story about Coyote, Jim's cell phone rang and he went into another room to answer it, momentarily forgetting not everyone had his hearing. "Simon, what's up?" 

"Have you learned anything, yet?" 

"Not really. Blair's human, again. He's listening to Whitefeather's stories with fascination. I'm worried about him." 

"Me, too." 

"He fought Lash with every ounce of his being. I can smell sweat or distress." Jim couldn't say the words. Blair wasn't responding like Blair. Jim didn't have the technical jargon to explain things other people didn't sense and let the cell phone go quiet. 

"And Blair isn't giving off any signals," said Simon. "I don't claim to understand this sentinel stuff." 

"Blair has the attention span of a two-year-old. When he looks at me with love-filled eyes, I'm afraid that I've lost him already." 

"Don't you want him to look at you with love?" 

"Simon, I'm not good with words, so listen. Blair looks at me like a small child looks at a parent or a dog looks at his owner. I don't want to be his alpha." Jim glanced back toward Whitefeather's office. "I miss the banter." 

"Brown says the reports Sandburg entered are correctly typed. Sandburg is mentally sound. Don't you tell me otherwise." 

"Sandburg sat at Henri's desk for over an hour without saying a word. Can you think of anything less Sandburg-like?" 

"What do you need? I'm having Rhonda research werewolf legends." 

"Let Sandburg continue working. He needs to feel useful." 

"You stay with him. I can't have a wolf panicking in my office." 

"I asked him to join me in the breakroom. He needs to stay by my side when we're out. He's a twenty-eight year old man - we can't treat him like a baby." 

"Bring a blanket to work. I have a soft spot for the kid, but he'd better not howl or he goes to the kennels. People need to work." 

"No howling. Good-bye, sir." Jim went back to sit beside Blair on the worn office sofa. "That was Simon. He will let you return to work if you don't howl." 

"My face and front legs were caught," Blair said, resting against Jim's chest. 

"Honey, the other dogs stay in the kennels." Jim took a brush out of Blair's bag and started brushing his hair. It wasn't an appropriate thing to do, but Whitefeather had seen Blair change from a wolf to human. He told Simon not to treat Blair like a baby and he was doing it. Jim would practice what he preached later. Right now, he might as well fix the young man's hair. "Other people are trying to work." 

"Man, Simon was howling louder than me. I felt like covering my ears with my paws. That man doesn't need a bull horn." 

"You've noticed that. Did you and Mr. Whitefeather have a good talk?" 

"He says the wolf is a powerful totem. He says there must be a reason that Brother Wolf chose to speak through me." 

"And once we understand the message the manifestations will stop?" asked Jim. 

"Most of our stories are moral lessons," said Whitefeather. "You, Blair or this Simon person needs to be taught a lesson. I'm guessing the Simon person." 

"Why is Blair suffering to teach me or Simon a lesson?" asked Jim, taking Blair's hand. His blue eyes were adoring him, again. 

"Brother Wolf is protecting Blair," said Whitefeather. 

Blair's stomach growled. After kibble, a Wonderburger would be heaven. "Tom, thank you for your time." He and Jim rose to take their leave. 

"Blair, come by anytime you want to talk or hear another story," said Whitefeather. 

"I love hearing your stories, man," said Blair, smiling widely. 

"Second graders on a field trip don't appreciate the old stories like you do," Whitefeather responded with a wry grin. 

"I'll bring him by." Jim handed Blair his backpack. "Chief, we need to check out your office at Rainier after we have lunch." 

After they got in the truck, Blair said, "Jim, Simon would be happier if I could control this. I was thinking I could use biofeedback." 

"It's a nice idea, but," Jim said, not wanting to insult the love of his life. However, Blair needed to know the truth, even if it hurt. "I've accused you of having ADD. Well, you have the attention span of a -." Jim paused and waited for the light to change. "- a wolf." 

"Big Guy, I have never turned down a challenge. You aren't the only one who can visualize dials in his head." 

"What do your dials look like? Hands on one end and paws on the other?" 

"Real funny, man." 

Jim frowned at the traffic. "Whitefeather is full of bullshit. We need to find who or what cursed you. Biofeedback is useless against a curse." 

"I wanted to talk to Mr. Whitefeather, so I concentrated on my nerve endings firing." 

"Coincidence." 

"It wasn't coincidence that I was able to slow down the transmogrification enough that off my chair and get my pants off. I couldn't slow it down enough to remove my shirt. I didn't intentionally slow it down, but I knew I needed to get my clothes off. The other times it lasted a few seconds or less." 

"Change now." 

"If I change now, I'll need four Wonderburgers, instead of one." 

"Good point." 

"I know you didn't agree to having a pet Sandburg. I'm unable to get a job or drive until I get this under control." 

"Chief, I like taking care of you. Don't ever think you're a burden. I don't even mind when you need to whiz at two in the morning." 

Jim enjoyed watching Blair eat his Wonderburger and fries so much that Jim ended up buying him a second. Eating for Blair was Zen experience. Jim mentally put Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance in Blair's to-read pile. Last night, Blair had said, "All any of us have is moments." 

Watching Blair's greasy smile, Jim recalled the sesame seeds, the ketchup, the charcoal, grease, the onions and a hundred other things that made Wonderburgers great. Suddenly, Blair dropped his burger onto the table. His eyes closed and his muscles tensed. His heart was racing and sweat was starting to moisten his face as his hands gripped the fast food restaurant table. Less than two seconds later, his pulse returned to normal and his muscles relaxed. 

"What happened?" asked Jim. 

"I fought changing and won," said Blair with wide-eyed joy. "I'm still human." 

"I saw you calm your body and the concentration on your face." Reaching across the table, Jim kissed his forehead. "You did great." 

When they got back to the truck, Jim turned on the police radio. There was a building collapse two blocks away. Blair removed his clothing before the bulletin was finished. 

Blair smiled. 'Chief, Police Wolf, on duty." 

"Chief, don't." 

A wolf was sitting in Blair's seat. Jim figured Blair would have to work this out on his own. When they arrived at the scene, Blair dashed out of the truck and into the fallen building. Jim knew not to follow him across the uneven ground. Blair had explained that human beings give up stability to have the ability to walk on two-legs. Looking at the wolf sniffing through the rubble, Jim wondered if he would ever again be lectured on evolutionary anthropology or any other weird "ology" Blair had studied. 

"Your dog?" asked the foreman. 

"Wolf," said Jim. "He gets insulted if you call him a dog." 

"Has he done rescue work before?" 

"Plenty of times. He's a great partner. No one could be more loyal." 

"There are two men trapped in that mess." 

"He'll find them." 

Blair smelled human blood among the dust, concrete and rebar. He walked low to the ground, testing his footing, checking for weak spots. He found the source of the odor and dug with his paws. He saw a man's face and licked it. Then he dug around the man's arms and legs. A good heartbeat, the man was alive. He barked as he continued to dig the man out of the dust and rubble. 

Jim shouted, "He found someone." 

Blair pushed more of the wreckage off the half-buried man then pushed on his back to help him sit up. Hands would be useful right now. However, shifting his center of gravity on a pile of shattered concrete wouldn't be a brilliant idea. Wolf ears must be almost as good as sentinel ears. Jim did tease about hearing dog whistles. Now Blair was the one monitoring heartbeats without a stethoscope. He licked the man's face, again. 

"Do you want me to follow you?" 

Blair shook his head. 

"You want me to stay put until the rescue workers come?" 

Blair barked. 

As he sniffed for the other man, he barked some more. He found a hand pinned under a pillar. This man's heart was also beating, but he smelled caked blood and open wounds. His heartbeat wasn't as strong as that of the other man. He was going into shock. 

Blair scrambled to remove some of the debris from around the trapped man. He couldn't do anything about the pillar. Then he rested his head on the man's chest until the rescue helicopter was able to air lift the men out. Blair then ran to Jim's awaiting arms. 

"You did good," said Jim. 

The foreman said, "Chief, we wouldn't have found those men without you." 

Simon walked over the police barricade. "You saved those two men's lives. After Jim gives you a bath, I'll take you to the park." 

"Chief is cured now," said Jim. 

Simon smiled at the dust-covered animal. "He doesn't look cured." 

When Jim opened the passenger door of the truck, Blair sneezed. Jim laughed. "Simon is right about you needing a bath." 

In the bathroom, Blair focused on the body sensations he experienced while transforming and recreated them through biofeedback. If it were as easy as envisioning himself human as Jim suggested, he would have done it two weeks ago. He had to force his nerve endings to fire in the correct order. However, once the change started his body would complete the process. His body took the cues and he became human, again. 

Now in human form, Blair showered and shampooed his long curly hair twice, luxuriating in the feel of his fingers in his soapy hair. Blair needed to shower himself especially since Jim didn't feel he was competent enough to even brush his own hair. He washed his body with a bath sponge. He then put conditioner in his hair and rinsed one final time. After using a towel for his hair and another for his body, he hung up them, not forgetting Jim's house rules. 

After putting on clean underwear and large sweats that said "Property of CPD", Blair sat down to read the rest of Through a Window by Jane Goodall. Jim answered the door before it rang. 

"Chief is sitting on the sofa waiting for his walk," Jim deadpanned. 

"Hi, Simon," said Blair, looking over the top of the page he was reading. "Is the walk in the park still on?" 

"Sandburg, I'm not taking you for a walk. You're a big boy and can potty yourself." 

"Now do you believe I'm cured?" Blair giggled. 

"What are you going to do now?" Simon asked. 

"The semester is shot. I need to start paying back my student loans. Kibble doesn't pay the bills." Blair twirled a piece of hair between his fingers. 

"I posted a job for a clerk-typist. It would pay better than kibble. I'm sure you would be able to start within the week. No more ride along privileges. You'll be working for the City of Cascade and need to act appropriately." 

"No ride along privileges." Blair shook his hand. "Fine. I get flex hours." 

"As long as you get your work done." Simon talked to Jim a few minutes before leaving. 

As they were cooking dinner, Jim said, "Chief still has ride along privileges." 

Blair chopped the onions. "I was thinking the same thing." 

* * *

End Wolf Whistles 7 by Athena: athena@fateordestiny.com

Author and story notes above.

  
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